The issue that caused a majority of southern voters to switch from supporting the Democratic Party to supporting the Republican Party in the 1960s was the Civil Rights Movement. The Democratic Party, particularly under President Lyndon B. Johnson, embraced civil rights legislation and policies that aimed to end segregation and promote equality for African Americans. This stance angered many white southern voters who were staunchly segregationist, leading them to abandon the Democratic Party and align with the Republican Party, which took a more conservative stance on civil rights issues. This shift in political alignment, known as the Southern Strategy, played a significant role in reshaping the political landscape of the southern United States.
